In the aftermath of the disastrous events of Sep. 11, 2001 and hurricane Katrina, the emergency response capability of most governmental agencies charged with such a mission has undergone a thorough review. After reviewing the tools and programs available to emergency response agencies (police, fire and rescue departments, hospitals, etc.) of local, state, and the federal government, certain inadequacies were uncovered. It became readily apparent that certain deficiencies persisted in treating large-scale disasters, including the lack of specifically designed equipment capable of being immediately deployed into disaster areas to supply basic needs for the inhabitants, such as water, electricity, telecommunications, etc. Such inadequacies include the inability of the survivors to reach relief supplies, the inability of the relief supplies to reach the survivors, and the lack of facilities to help the survivors and/or workers rebuild the infrastructure. Similar problems locating potable water and electricity are encountered daily by the inhabitants of developing and third world countries and/or those countries currently at war.
The use of large scale equipment, such as that employed by the U.S. government following Hurricane Katrina, produced potable water. However, survivors could not reach the location where the equipment was placed. Such equipment must be placed throughout the community so that the individuals residing in the community can reach such equipment on foot, and carry water from the equipment by hand.
There exist a multitude of mobile and portable power stations that supply electricity to field hospitals, emergency aid units, and water filtration systems. Most of these stations rely solely on generators which use fossil fuels (e.g., diesel oil) for generating electricity. However, these fossil fuels must be constantly replenished and their combustion releases harmful pollutants into the environment. Some of these portable stations also include tanks containing potable water or they are adapted to hook up to a supply of potable water. Since these limited resources often run out before the emergency situation has abated, portable and self-reliant stations have been designed which depend on wind turbines and/or solar cell panels for generating and storing electrical energy.
For example, U.S. Pre-grant publication No. 2006/01373348, to Pas, discloses a mobile power station provided with a wind turbine and/or solar cell panel containing solar cells and storage elements for storing electrical energy. The storage elements include a battery as well as a hydrogen system having a hydrogen generator, tank, and cell for generating electricity by combustion of hydrogen.
Similarly, the “Mobile Power Station”™ MPS is a self-sufficient power station housed in a standard shipping container. It includes at least one wind turbine and solar panels for self-generated power. Like the present invention, the MPS can be transported by truck, train, ship, plane or parachuted by plane. However, unlike the present invention, the MPS requires the use of the telescoping arms and solar panels which must be carefully assembled on the side of the container by a crew. The asymmetrical arrangement of the top panels on the top of the container can act as a sail that may tip the container during windy conditions.
None of the aforementioned prior art disclose the space saving arrangement of solar panels in the stowed position on top of the container of the inventive station. Nor does the prior art teach or suggest symmetrically arranging the solar panels in the deployed position to enhance the stability of the station. The symmetrical arrangement of the solar panels provides lateral stability to the station, without the need for an auxiliary support system used in Pas station, as described above. The solar panels of the present invention are constructed and arranged in a manner that maximizes the surface area exposed to the sun. Furthermore, the solar panels are arranged such that they may be easily and readily stowed inside or on top of the container when not in use or during transport of the station.
What is lacking in the art is a portable and self-sustaining power station that can be positioned within the disaster zone or a remote location and provides an electrical power system, a water treatment system capable of converting contaminated water into potable water, a water distribution system, and a telecommunications system.